5 Ways to Help Communities Affected by Hurricanes (and Other Natural Disasters)

This year’s hurricane season has been extraordinarily active and destructive across parts of the U.S. If you’ve been following coverage of Hurricane Florence and of Hurricane Michael, you’re well aware of the dangers they’ve brought, including life-threatening storm surges, catastrophic flooding and historic rainfall.

As the effects of these storms become clear, you may feel compelled to help. Yet because of the sensitive nature of disaster relief work, it’s important to preemptively take stock of your options and figure out the most impactful ways to lend a hand. To assist you with this journey, we’re sharing five effective ways to support communities in the wake of a natural disaster. We’ve done our work so we can provide you with a list of reputable causes that are committed to providing disaster relief.

1. Send Funds

Oftentimes, the most effective way to help victims and survivors following a natural disaster is with a financial gift to disaster relief organizations that have strong presence in affected communities. These organizations have likely already produced response plans for emergency situations such as these. And they depend on our donations to provide immediate relief.

More so than donated goods, financial donations can be given quickly, are versatile, and remain helpful beyond the initial response by aiding in long-term recovery work. No matter how much you can give, every dollar goes a long way.

In fact, many nonprofits set up special disaster relief funds in response to events such as Hurricane Florence, so you can ensure that your designated gift is supporting the most urgent disaster. Some organizations, such as the Salvation Army, even waive their usual administrative fees when a major disaster takes place, meaning 100% of the money you give goes to those who need it.

2. Give Blood

If you’re eligible, giving blood is an especially meaningful way to help out in the wake of Hurricane Florence and other natural disasters. In extreme weather conditions, road travel is often hazardous, preventing regular donors from giving and canceling scheduled blood drives. At the same time, however, there’s often increased demand for blood from hospitals.

Unlike other medical supplies, blood and platelets can’t be stockpiled in advance due to having a short shelf life. If you can donate, you can help ensure that there continues to be a sufficient blood supply for those in need. Contact the American Red Cross or local organizations like The Blood Connection (the Carolinas) and SunCoast Blood Bank (Florida) to set up an appointment.

3. Donate Goods

While donating items is very generous, do NOT send unsolicited donations to organizations helping with Hurricane Florence relief. Sorting through, cleaning and distributing goods can be costly and divert time and resources from more urgent needs.

If there’s an organization you’d like to support, check to see if they’re currently accepting donations of goods before organizing, collecting or sending anything. You can give these organizations a call or visit their website to learn more. Organizations can provide you with a list of items needed, so you can make sure you’re only sending critical and useful supplies.

At the time of the original publication, we noted requests for goods coming from organizations like Catholic Charities Raleigh and Urban Ministry Center. Examples of items that organizations need include flashlights, batteries, nonperishable food, diapers and gift cards.

Again, if you have any doubts, please consider donating cash instead.

4. Volunteer Time

While watching disasters like Hurricane Florence unfold, many of us may feel the need to travel to affected areas and volunteer. Although the impulse is commendable, you may end up going more harm than good. In fact, we highly recommend that you do not self-deploy to disaster-stricken areas.

Before deciding where and how to volunteer your time, it’s important to assess the situation and your skillset. For example, if you aren’t currently trained or certified in disaster relief, your time may be better spent helping with long-term recovery efforts rather than the initial response.

You can also search for opportunities on VolunteerMatch.org to volunteer locally or virtually. To get started, filter search results by location, cause area (we recommend “Disaster Relief”), and keyword (e.g., “Hurricane”). Please be patient with your search. It will take time to assess the damage and havoc wreaked by Hurricane Florence, determine unmet needs, and figure out how volunteers like you can support hurricane response and recovery efforts. Organizations may not have had the chance to post volunteer opportunities just yet, and you might not hear back from them immediately after expressing interest.

Finally, if you are passionate about disaster relief, consider completing your disaster response trainingnow. The reality is, Hurricane Florence will not be the last of its kind. Completing a training course now means you’ll be ready to mobilize during the next disaster and in any local emergencies.

5. Keep It Up

Immediate response to Hurricane Florence is only one phase of the emergency management cycle. Relief and recovery efforts will last long after the storm passes and media coverage ends. In fact, it often takes many months, if not years, and millions of dollars for affected areas to recover fully from damages sustained by a natural disaster.

Consider donating time or money to long-term recovery needs, especially since this phase of disaster response tends to be the most underfunded and under-resourced. You can have a huge impact by contributing to organizations like Habitat for Humanity — an organization committed to helping lower-income populations return to normalcy following the initial relief response.

Organizations Mobilizing Around Hurricane Florence

Once you’ve determined the most effective way(s) for you to give back, you’ll want to find an organization committed to helping communities affected by Hurricane Florence. For your convenience, we’ve compiled a list of some of the organizations actively responding to the needs of those impacted by the storm (this is by no means is comprehensive).

About The Author

Elysia Gabe

Elysia helps nonprofits, volunteers and companies connect with one another and engage with their communities by crafting engaging copy and sharing relevant knowledge through VolunteerMatch's Help Center, blogs, newsletters, and social media channels.

18 Comments

DianeOctober 13, 2018

I have a huge free room for anyone who needs help getting their life restarted. I live in Germantown Maryland – convenient to public transportation. I have little money but can give someone a little relief and comfort while they are undergo this horrific tragedy.
Diane
GOD BLESS

Elysia GabeOctober 15, 2018

Hi Diane,

That’s very generous. If you’re interested in sharing your home with individuals displaced by Hurricane Florence or Hurricane Michael, we recommend posting on Airbnb as part of their OpenHomes initiative. Check out the following links if you’re interested:

Is Samaritan’s Purse also deploying teams and resources? Why don’t yall have all organizations listed?

Elysia GabeSeptember 18, 2018

Hi Karen,
The list of organizations we’ve shared isn’t comprehensive. Another reader shared that Samaritan’s Purse is already on the ground helping victims, but to be sure, we recommend reaching out to the organization directly.

If you know of any other organizations helping with the response and recovery efforts, please share them here!

Dear Madam,
Good Evening & Greetings!
This is Md Mazharul Islam. In my childhood I wish to Human Service! I would like to serve them stay with close…. so Please give an opportunity as a volunteer.

Elysia GabeSeptember 18, 2018

Great! To find a volunteer opportunity for you, please head to VolunteerMatch.org, enter your location and click Get Started! If you need any help with this, check out this section of our Help Center. Happy volunteering!

Hello everyone! This is Tiffany Lewis-Castillo, founder and CEO of PFPO Pens for Pals Organization; a 501(c)(3) non-profit. I’d like to take a few minutes to tell you about our organization and give you the most updated information available, in real time, regarding Hurricane Florence.
We are are a national and international pool of resources and very generous volunteers for any natural disaster.

While all of our efforts are going to remain focused on short-term rapid response and long-term recovery, relief and rebuilding of affected areas, we are currently setting up the largest warehouse distribution drop off, and delivery (hopefully in Fayetteville depending on the water rising).
While we may have started out as a suicide prevention and anti-bullying organization, our 501(c)(3) has come a very long way in a few years.
As for our immediate needs and plans, we are in need of truckload donations and trustworthy volunteers to help fundraise and gather resources to the most amount of people that we can possibly serve.
I can say that I am so proud of this nation for pulling forger so rapidly, I am honored to get to be a part of this hurricane, while we are still in Phase 4 of rebuilding and getting people certified in a skill or trade- from Hurricane Harvey.
In the near future, we will be holding fundraisers and adopting families for the holidays, again this year.
We are hoping for national help. We have no limits to the amount of resources that will come to our first warehouse in NC; all trucks will be routed there. We also have 6 private planes available from one of our partners.
We look forward to your support and would love to gather a large amount or even a few volunteers that would like to help us save those and sustain, feed, clothe, and eventually rebuild these communities. We are a very devoted team and always looking for amazing people to partner with and work with.
Please let us know if you or anyone you know is able to gather donations, a warehouse, food, water feed up to 4,000 people a day, or can help with the unloading/ loading and distribution of our donations.

Every single donation we get is 100% fully tax deductible and our products are brand new. We are a network seasoned, vetted volunteers, we work with several stores, of stores for in-kind donations, but we always need more during times of crisis.

At the end of the day, when all
Of the other volunteers and teams have left the area, we will remain in tact all the way through the rebuilding process, which will take years.

I am excited to see us all come together again this year to serve so many, and look forward to developing new relationships with families and volunteers.
We have had many lifetime friendships develop during times of crisis and we look forward to your kind heart, generosity, and beautiful souls to join us in bringing about a rapid set up and distribution center that will stand as the “main” centralized hub for N.C.

My name is Julia and I want to help organizations that are packaging good to S.C. I am willing to help in transporting people or donations to wherever it needs to go so that the people affected by Hurricane Florence receive it. Anything I can do.

Elysia GabeSeptember 18, 2018

Hi Julia,
Great! When you get the chance, please head over to VolunteerMatch.org and search for “Disaster Relief” volunteer opportunities in your area. You might also want to use a keyword, like “hurricane,” to help narrow down your search results.

Please note, it can take time for organizations to assess the damages and needs of a community affected by a natural disaster like Hurricane Florence so it may be a few days before opportunities helping with Hurricane Florence show up on the site. If that’s the case, we recommend reaching out to disaster relief and recovery organizations near you to see how you help.

Hello,
I have volunteered for years with Red Cross and even as a student nurse. I am now retired as a nurse and psychologist, but want to help in Disaster Relief anyway I can. Please feel free to contact me.

Elysia GabeSeptember 17, 2018

That’s wonderful, Debra Lynn. I’m sure your skills would be valuable to many disaster relief organizations. To find available opportunities, please head over to VolunteerMatch.org, enter the location where you’d like to help, and then click the magnifying glass to view your search results. You might also want to use a keyword, like “hurricane,” or select a Cause Area, such as “Disaster Relief.”

I am a retired nurse I would like to volunteer my time doing anything please advise thank you

Elysia GabeSeptember 17, 2018

Hi Brenda,
That’s wonderful. You can search for available volunteer opportunities on VolunteerMatch.org by entering the affected areas in the location field and using a keyword, like “hurricane.” If you don’t see anything posted just yet, please be sure to check back or reach out to one of the organizations we’ve listed directly to see what they need help with!

Please include Samaritan’s Purse in your list of recommended organizations involved in disaster relief. It is a Christian ministry run by Franklin Graham and they send aid around the world when disasters occur. Based in North Carolina, they’re already on the ground ministering to victims of Hurricane Florence.

Elysia GabeSeptember 17, 2018

Thank you so much for sharing, Charlotte!

Daniel R FranciniSeptember 16, 2018

Me and my therapy dog (MIA) would like information on places that we could visit to help the people in the Hurricane Florence area in these troubled times. My name is Dan, and we live in Ohio but we can get time off work to help these people. Please send information to my email address.

Elysia GabeSeptember 17, 2018

Hi Daniel,
You’ll want to visit VolunteerMatch.org to search for available volunteer opportunities for you and your therapy dog. Enter the area you’d like to volunteer in in the location field. You may also want to use a keyword, like “therapy dog,” to help you narrow down the results.

If you need further help with this, feel free to contact our Support team. They’re super experienced and always happy to help!